SEC Charges N.Y.-Based High Frequency Trading Firm With Violating Net Capital Rule For Broker-Dealers
The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged a New York-based high frequency trading firm with violating the net capital rule that requires all broker-dealers to maintain minimum levels of net liquid assets or net capital. The firm’s former chief operating officer is charged with causing the extensive violations. An SEC investigation found that Latour Trading LLC operated without maintaining its required minimum net capital on 19 of 24 reporting dates during a two-year period, and the firm missed the mark by large amounts ranging from $2 million to $28 million. During this period, Latour’s trading at times accounted for as…
Read MoreSEC Obtains Asset Freeze Against Company in Turks and Caicos Islands Behind South Florida-Based Ponzi Scheme
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced an emergency asset freeze against a company located in Turks and Caicos Islands in connection with its operation of a South Florida-based Ponzi scheme. The SEC’s request for the emergency asset freeze against Abatement Corp. Holding Company Limited was granted in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida last week. The SEC’s complaint alleged that Abatement Corp. and its now-deceased principal Joseph Laurer – who commonly used the name Dr. Josef V. Laurer – falsely promised investors safe, guaranteed returns while engaging in an offering fraud and Ponzi scheme from…
Read MoreSEC Charges IT Employee at Law Firm With Insider Trading Ahead of Merger Announcements
The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged an employee in an international law firm’s IT department with insider trading ahead of several mergers and acquisitions involving firm clients being advised on the deals. The SEC alleges that Dimitry Braverman, a senior information technology professional at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, had access to nonpublic information in the firm’s client-related databases and garnered more than $300,000 in illicit profits by trading in advance of merger announcements. Braverman began by insider trading in accounts in his own name, but shifted course when a lawyer at his firm was charged by the SEC…
Read MoreSEC and SBA to Partner on Events on Small Business Capital Raising Under the Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act
The Securities and Exchange Commission, in partnership with the U.S. Small Business Administration, announced today they will jointly host events to inform small business owners and entrepreneurs about new options that are and will become available for capital raising under the Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act. The events are designed for existing and aspiring small businesses, including those that are minority-owned, women-owned, and veteran-owned, and will discuss the JOBS Act, which expands the options that businesses may use to raise capital. One change already in place gives firms the ability to advertise certain private offerings; a second that is…
Read MoreSEC Sanctions 19 Firms and Individual Trader for Short Selling Violations in Advance of Stock Offerings
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced the latest sanctions in a continuing enforcement initiative uncovering certain hedge fund advisers and private equity firms that have illegally participated in an offering of a stock after short selling it during a restricted period. The SEC last year announced the initiative to enhance enforcement of Rule 105 of Regulation M, which is designed to preserve the independent pricing mechanisms of the securities markets and prevent stock price manipulation. Rule 105 typically prohibits firms or individuals from short selling a stock within five business days of participating in an offering for that same…
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